The Bates College Noonday Concert series continues its fall season with a selection of programs throughout the month of October. The free concerts, open to the public, will be held on Tuesdays from 12:30 to 1 p.m. in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall.

Mark Howard, a member of the Bates College class of 1975 and an ardent reader and collector of cook books, will discuss history through the kitchen door in Cook Books as Narrative History: Two Hundred Years of American Cook Book Publishing, 1796-1996, An Overview at Bates July 15 and July 16 at 7:30 p.m. in Room 104 of the Olin Arts Center. The public is welcome to attend both talks free of charge.